← Maine medical records custodian and retention laws

Maine — Medical Records Checklist

For a practice that is closing, being sold, relocating or whose physician is retiring. Prepared 21 September 2026.

How long records must be kept

Adult patients: Maine sets NO retention mandate for private offices. 22 M.R.S. s.1711-B expressly leaves existing law and ethical obligations untouched.
Patients who were minors: None set by Maine statute.
Clock starts: Not applicable - no state clock exists.
Also: The 6-year figure in circulation is a Maine Medical Association RECOMMENDATION, not law.
Also: The Board of Licensure in Medicine publishes closure guidance explicitly as best practice, not statute.
Also: The operative floors are HIPAA's 6 years and the malpractice limitation period.

Before you close — what this state requires

Board guidance (NOT statute): ~90 days notice where possible
A letter to each patient, plus notices in local newspapers at least three times over a few months
~60 days before closure, refer patients needing frequent follow-up and arrange follow-up for acute problems
Board reports complaints about both lack of closure notice AND patients unable to obtain records after a physician retires or moves

Where this comes from

22 M.R.S. s.1711-B
https://legislature.maine.gov/statutes/22/title22sec1711-B.html

Read this before you act on it. Every statement above was taken from the state's own published rule or statute and is quoted or closely paraphrased from it. It is a working checklist, not legal advice, and it is a snapshot: retention periods change, and several states adjust their copying fees every year. Confirm the current text with the source listed above, or with your attorney, before you rely on a date or a dollar figure.

Figures stated as of: Verified September 2026

Prepared by Morgan Records Management for Maine. Checklist built 21 September 2026.